Cagliari can reach 12 points as Udinese seek a first home win

Udinese v Cagliari kicks off today at 13:00 UTC at Bluenergy Stadium - Stadio Friuli, with referee G. Manganiello overseeing a meeting between 13th and fifth in Serie A. Cagliari arrive with 9 points from four games, while Udinese have 4, making the five-point gap the central measure of the afternoon.

What's at stake

Cagliari are three points behind leaders AS Roma and can move to 12 points with a win, matching Roma's current total. Udinese, who trail the leaders by eight points, can reach 7 points by taking all three; a defeat would leave them on 4 while Cagliari rise to 12, widening the present gap from five points to eight.

The numbers

Udinese's home record is 0W 1D 1L, with 2 goals scored, 3 conceded and no clean sheets. Cagliari have won both away matches, scoring 3 and conceding 1, with one clean sheet. Those figures give Cagliari the stronger venue-specific record before kickoff.

The broader numbers point in different directions. Udinese have scored 8 and conceded 10 across four games, while Cagliari have scored 4 and conceded 2. Recent form also favours Cagliari: Win, Loss, Win, Win, compared with Udinese's Draw, Win, Loss, Loss, listed most recent first.

One to watch

J. Ekkelenkamp is Udinese's leading named scorer in the available chart, with 2 goals and 1 assist in 4 appearances. H. Kamara has the same return of 2 goals and 1 assist in 4 appearances, giving Udinese two players with matching direct contributions to monitor against Cagliari's defence.

Why it matters

For Udinese, today's result is a chance to repair a 1W 1D 2L start and improve a home record without a clean sheet. Cagliari's 3W 0D 1L record offers a route towards the leaders, but absences including M. Felici, R. Idrissi, M. Nzola and Y. Trepy add a team-news factor to a match with clear table consequences.